Two Ghanaian nationals were sentenced in the United States and ordered to pay $581,261.67 each in restitution for their roles in a romance scam based in Ghana that targeted elderly Americans. Sadia Alhassan, 35, and Mohammed Saaminu Zuberu, 39, along with Shawn William Smith, 26, were convicted of defrauding U.S. citizens by persuading them to send money to fictitious romantic partners.
Alhassan, who lived in Tallahassee on a student visa, received an 18-month federal prison sentence and three years of supervised release. Zuberu, a dual U.S.-Ghanaian citizen residing in Aldie, Virginia, was sentenced to about five-and-a-half months in federal prison, also followed by three years of supervised release.
Smith, a Tallahassee resident, was sentenced to one day in prison, followed by three years of supervised release and 150 hours of community service, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business.
This scam operated from March 2019 to March 2022, with individuals in Ghana preying on elderly Americans via phone and online platforms, creating fake romantic relationships to gain their trust and convince them to send money.
Alhassan and her husband, Smith, acted as intermediaries, receiving money packages sent by victims and processing the funds through accounts they controlled. They then transferred the money to Zuberu, who coordinated with the Ghana-based masterminds.
Court documents reveal Zuberu's role as a middleman, managing the transfer of funds between Alhassan, Smith, and the Ghana-based conspirators. On one occasion, Zuberu sent Alhassan a tracking receipt for a victim’s package, alerting the scammers when funds arrived. Some of the money was converted to money orders and deposited into controlled accounts before being withdrawn at ATMs in Ghana.
Assistant Special Agent Nicholas Ingegno of Homeland Security Investigations condemned the scheme, particularly for targeting elderly victims, and law enforcement agencies emphasized their dedication to prosecuting such cases.
The case was led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin M. Keen, with cooperation from multiple agencies, including the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, IRS Criminal Investigations, and Homeland Security Investigations.
